was glad to read this "Congratulations! You are doing better than average for your location!
Your estimated cost is $210 less than average neighbors. It looks like you are doing a great job keeping your electricity costs in check. Your new target could be what efficient neighbors are achieving"

:dance:

milkmania

07-09-2012, 09:09 PM

hottest 2 week of the year so far and I kicked it's ***!

milkmania

07-09-2012, 09:11 PM

.....

rholmes

07-10-2012, 12:28 AM

maybe my tinfoil hat is on too tight, but I would never put one of those on my house. What happens when you get the message "You are using more electricity than your neighbors, and as such, we will shut down your power when you exceed XX kwh's to make sure there is enough to go around..."

Lars

07-10-2012, 01:07 AM

wish i had one of these things!

mzimme

07-10-2012, 09:10 AM

milkmania, do you just have a super efficient A/C unit or something?

milkmania

07-10-2012, 12:48 PM

milkmania, do you just have a super efficient A/C unit or something?

modified my lifestyle during this heat wave....
clothes dryer after 11:00pm, raised the A/C a few degrees, added some room darkening shades, repaired the whole house attic fan, reduced "phantom electric" etc.... 1821 sqf brick house w/ garage.
A big help is that most of the house is southern shaded by trees from 2:00 pm till dark.

you can kinda see my pattern here

get_sum

07-10-2012, 07:07 PM

I just signed up. Thanks!!

Lars

07-10-2012, 07:40 PM

wow. seriously so cool. as an EE I sure wish i had that. I think it'd be eye opening for everyone if they could see how they consume.

milkmania

07-31-2012, 02:26 PM

my normal summer rate is $0.11 per kWh....
I get these text message and email alerts that help:woohoo:

A critical price alert has been called for Tuesday, July 31st 2012. From 3p.m. to 6p.m. the price will be $0.46 per kWh based on a rate of $0.46 per kWh, please take appropriate action to reduce electricity use during this time.

rkhodges21

07-31-2012, 04:13 PM

maybe my tinfoil hat is on too tight, but I would never put one of those on my house. What happens when you get the message "You are using more electricity than your neighbors, and as such, we will shut down your power when you exceed XX kwh's to make sure there is enough to go around..."

The bad thing is that you are not too far off the mark with this post. As the EPA continues to "crack down" on coal power and tax power companies for their carbon footprint, the power companies will first try passing huge costs on to the consumer, and when that doesn't help, then they will send people like milkmania a text saying, "Energy usage is in danger of exceeding acceptable peak consumption. We will be switching off your air conditioner/ refrigerator/ hot water heater from 12 noon to 3 pm today." And if things get too bad, they will just completely shut all the smart meter people off to keep from paying high bills. I have already seen things like this happen, but mostly in the manufacturing arena, but as people willingly let the gov't/ power companies have an inch, they will take a mile.

rkhodges21

07-31-2012, 04:17 PM

wow. seriously so cool. as an EE I sure wish i had that. I think it'd be eye opening for everyone if they could see how they consume.

There is a much easier way than this. Go buy or borrow a meter that you can plug into the wall and then plug your appliance into it. Some will only read the instantaneous consumption of the appliance, but other ones can log the useage over a certain amount of time. I will try to post a link to such a meter if I can.

milkmania

07-31-2012, 04:50 PM

The bad thing is that you are not too far off the mark with this post. As the EPA continues to "crack down" on coal power and tax power companies for their carbon footprint, the power companies will first try passing huge costs on to the consumer, and when that doesn't help, then they will send people like milkmania a text saying, "Energy usage is in danger of exceeding acceptable peak consumption. We will be switching off your air conditioner/ refrigerator/ hot water heater from 12 noon to 3 pm today." And if things get too bad, they will just completely shut all the smart meter people off to keep from paying high bills. I have already seen things like this happen, but mostly in the manufacturing arena, but as people willingly let the gov't/ power companies have an inch, they will take a mile.

on the upside to this......
currently, I can decide on my own what to switch off and when.
like today, turning up the A/C and heading to the park from 3:00 to 6:00

but, I do see your point

rkhodges21

07-31-2012, 04:53 PM

There is a much easier way than this. Go buy or borrow a meter that you can plug into the wall and then plug your appliance into it. Some will only read the instantaneous consumption of the appliance, but other ones can log the useage over a certain amount of time. I will try to post a link to such a meter if I can.

Here is a link to the Kill-A-Watt. It is a simple plug-in meter that will display many different things such as volts, amps, power factor, and estimated energy costs. Plug your TV into it while it is switched off or your phone charger when you are not using it and be prepared to gasp. You can also get a meter with a timer and killswitch to keep your appliance from consuming energy when you do not want it to.

http://www.powermeterstore.com/c112/measure_power_at_the_plug.php

Here is also a link to your own "smart meter" monitoring system. You can use it to basically do the same thing the smart meter does, but without the power company having the ability to shut off things in your home that they deem unnecessary (short of them just shutting down the grid system to your area).

http://www.powermeterstore.com/p7774/ted_5000.php

rkhodges21

07-31-2012, 05:03 PM

on the upside to this......
currently, I can decide on my own what to switch off and when.
like today, turning up the A/C and heading to the park from 3:00 to 6:00

but, I do see your point

Sorry, I posted again before I saw this post. I think the best solution to this country's "energy dilemma" is conservation, and I applaud you for the steps you have taken, so please do not think I am bashing you in the least. I am just really leary about giving the power companies the ability to decide what is best for me, that's all, especially when I don't agree with the reasoning behind it all, ie global warming/ climate change. I, in fact, hope to purchase some smart monitors when I can to help me save energy because I don't always remember to turn my AC up during the day, and I would like to have the ability to turn off the outlet to my TV remotely because I always forget to switch off the power strip. Plus my wife is a stay-at-home mom so I don't really ever have a chance to just switch off my ac unit without her and my daughter complaining lol. I could also use a timer for my pool pump to limit the energy we use during the summer months, but all in all, my wife and I are pretty cost conscious. For a 1490 sq. ft home, our bills have not been much over $200.

milkmania

07-31-2012, 09:17 PM

Sorry, I posted again before I saw this post. I think the best solution to this country's "energy dilemma" is conservation, and I applaud you for the steps you have taken, so please do not think I am bashing you in the least. I am just really leary about giving the power companies the ability to decide what is best for me, that's all, especially when I don't agree with the reasoning behind it all, ie global warming/ climate change. I, in fact, hope to purchase some smart monitors when I can to help me save energy because I don't always remember to turn my AC up during the day, and I would like to have the ability to turn off the outlet to my TV remotely because I always forget to switch off the power strip. Plus my wife is a stay-at-home mom so I don't really ever have a chance to just switch off my ac unit without her and my daughter complaining lol. I could also use a timer for my pool pump to limit the energy we use during the summer months, but all in all, my wife and I are pretty cost conscious. For a 1490 sq. ft home, our bills have not been much over $200.

oh man, don't worry about a thing.... I didn't see any bashing at allhttp://deephousepage.com/smilies/alc.gif

I did find this wiki deal quite interesting though... it discusses the controversy and opting out...also discussion about Smart Meters in other countries
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_meter

Dylan

08-01-2012, 01:12 PM

The utility company is San Diego swapped all the meters out over to digital about 3 years ago, and my bill has been higher ever since. Either coincidence, or maybe they're more precise? I have no idea. Several people in our area have complained of the same results.
I did appreciate the ability to view our useage. I used Google Power Meter (now defunct) to monitor and was really surprised how much we peaked when we got home. If nothing else, it makes you aware of what goes on behind the scene. I started changing my habits to spread my dependency out, but my wife could care less.

Thanks for sharing Milkmania!

Lars

08-01-2012, 02:23 PM

I think you have to see it from the utility's perspective. They have only so much capacity at a time. Demand coulld be 95% of capacity on a hot afternoon but at night have tons of excess capacity. If they can get people to move some heavy usage activities to night by charging more during the day they can spread the demand out and not have to spend even more money to bring on more capacity that is only used a handful of times per year.

A critical price alert has been called for Wednesday, August 1st 2012. From 3p.m. to 6p.m. the price will be $0.46 per kWh based on a rate of $0.46 per kWh, please take appropriate action to reduce electricity use during this time.

To learn more go to http://www.myogepower.com

Thank you,

myOGEpower.com

keep in mind, our normal summer rate is $0.11 per KWH... so that means I'm not running the dryer or heavy demand appliances during this time :)

update....
this afternoon's message :(
The OG&E SmartHours Price for electricity for your home will be at the critical rate of 45.767 cents per kilowatt hour between 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, 08/02/2012. This price does not include any applicable taxes, fees or charges.

CruisinGA

08-01-2012, 06:07 PM

And if things get too bad, they will just completely shut all the smart meter people off to keep from paying high bills. I have already seen things like this happen, but mostly in the manufacturing arena, but as people willingly let the gov't/ power companies have an inch, they will take a mile.

This is only half the story... Many industrials are what is called "interruptible" customers- this means the utility can interrupt their power if/when needed, and in turn they pay a much lower rate.

JohnE

08-01-2012, 06:07 PM

my normal summer rate is $0.11 per kWh....
I get these text message and email alerts that help:woohoo:

So do you turn the thermostat down to around 45 at night to keep the house comfortably cool late afternoon?:D

I kid. I totally understand the problem

rkhodges21

08-02-2012, 12:54 AM

This is only half the story... Many industrials are what is called "interruptible" customers- this means the utility can interrupt their power if/when needed, and in turn they pay a much lower rate.

True. TVA offers 5MR (minute response) and 60MR to customers and they give them better rates in return. The company gets a call that tells them they. Have 5 or 60 minutes to shed demand. If the facility complies everything is cool. If not the company gets hit with hefty fines. TVA phased out true interuptible options a couple of years ago I think.

milkmania

08-02-2012, 10:21 AM

So do you turn the thermostat down to around 45 at night to keep the house comfortably cool late afternoon?:D

I kid. I totally understand the problem

honestly.....
It's in the 105 to 108 degree range outside.
I've turned the A/C up to 90 degrees, the highest temp I saw in the house yesterday was 81 degrees.... not favorable, but livable :(

besides, it's only me in the house..... son is at baby momma's until the 15th.

rholmes

08-02-2012, 09:28 PM

We always keep the thermostat between 79-81 during the day. At night, we treat ourselves to 76-77...
We live in NC so we do have the 99+ degree weather. Highest electric bill was last month, it was $142. We are usually right around $100.

milkmania

08-13-2012, 06:30 PM

today's message:banana:
The OG&E SmartHours Price for electricity for your home will be at the standard rate of 9.1672 cents per kilowatt hour between 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, 08/14/2012. This price does not include any applicable taxes, fees or charges.

sure glad that cool front came through.... 89 degrees@4:30pm

milkmania

09-12-2012, 09:00 PM

just keeps getting better :)

The OG&E SmartHours Price for electricity for your home will be at the low rate of 5.0672 cents per kilowatt hour between 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, 09/13/2012. This price does not include any applicable taxes, fees or charges.

jgraham37128

09-12-2012, 09:59 PM

I changed over my two thermostats over to the new Nest Energy Labs thermostat. They are very sweet. The head developer of the original Apple ipod is the founder. they send you a monthly letter and all can be controlled from your phone.